Book: Her Every Fear
Author: Peter Swanson
Pages: 352
Publisher: William Morrow
Read On: Kindle
How Long it Took Me To Read: 3 hours
Plot Summary: The danger isn’t all in your head . . .
Growing up, Kate Priddy was always a bit neurotic, experiencing momentary bouts of anxiety that exploded into full blown panic attacks after an ex-boyfriend kidnapped her and nearly ended her life. When Corbin Dell, a distant cousin in Boston, suggests the two temporarily swap apartments, Kate, an art student in London, agrees, hoping that time away in a new place will help her overcome the recent wreckage of her life.
But soon after her arrival at Corbin’s grand apartment on Beacon Hill, Kate makes a shocking discovery: his next-door neighbor, a young woman named Audrey Marshall, has been murdered. When the police question her about Corbin, a shaken Kate has few answers, and many questions of her own—curiosity that intensifies when she meets Alan Cherney, a handsome, quiet tenant who lives across the courtyard, in the apartment facing Audrey’s. Alan saw Corbin surreptitiously come and go from Audrey’s place, yet he’s denied knowing her. Then, Kate runs into a tearful man claiming to be the dead woman’s old boyfriend, who insists Corbin did the deed the night that he left for London.
When she reaches out to her cousin, he proclaims his innocence and calms her nerves . . . until she comes across disturbing objects hidden in the apartment—and accidently learns that Corbin is not where he says he is. Could Corbin be a killer? And what about Alan? Kate finds herself drawn to this appealing man who seems so sincere, yet she isn’t sure. Jetlagged and emotionally unstable, her imagination full of dark images caused by the terror of her past, Kate can barely trust herself . . . So how could she take the chance on a stranger she’s just met?
Yet the danger Kate imagines isn’t nearly as twisted and deadly as what’s about to happen. When her every fear becomes very real.
And much, much closer than she thinks.
General Thoughts: I read The Kind Worth Killing back in 2015 and I LOVED, LOVED it. I highly recommend it. It was absolutely fantastic from start to finish. It was such a treat.
When I saw that the author had a new book out I just had to get my hands on it. So this book went straight to my Kindle and I read through it in a frenzy! :)
Things I Liked:
1. The writing and the story-telling was everything I was expecting. The pace was taut and fast and kept me turing pages rapidly. All good things that a thriller ought to have.
2. The setting of this book, largely in Boston and in part in London was a delight to read. My sister has been in Boston several times and she loved revisiting on of her favourite cities.
3. Kate is a really likeable character, she comes across as really authentic and real. She is scared, traumatised and yet trying to make a fresh start and be brave. You find yourself rooting for her and hoping no harm comes to her.
4. The book is told from 3 perspectives mainly-- Kate, Corbin and Alan and for a small part through the eyes of the killer and I enjoyed each and every perspective.
5. Alan was yet another interesting character. He isn't perfect by a long shot. Like he is certainly slightly problematic. Yet he comes across as real and very believable as a character and even oddly likeable. I found myself liking him and wondering why I liked a slightly creepy stalker?
6. The thing I really like about this book and to be honest this writer's story telling style is that he doesn't keep secrets for a impossibly long time. He doesn't keep you hanging. You know there are book where you told early on something happened in the past, a lot of clues are dropped but you aren't given the answer till the last page. It gets on my last nerve! This book gives you your answers at very reasonable times. I really appreciate it.
7. There are quite a few bookish and movie references throughout this book and it was just a fun little element.
8. Corbin is yet another character I found myself liking, even though he was incredibly grey (that is putting it mildly) but I couldn't help feel bad for him.
9. I also really appreciated that the author showed that Kate already had a pre-existing anxiety disorder and it got further aggravated following her traumatic experience with a deranged ex. Her current situation doesn't for a moment seem overdrawn because of this.
10. Kate is an artist and the book is full of her drawing and sketching which is something I find enjoyable to read about, isn't it fun reading about artists and art?
Things I Didn't Like:
1. This is a thriller. A mystery novel. Yet at exactly 39% the entire mystery is laid bare. And that can't be a good thing. It's not like the book got very boring or I didn't want to carry on, I still read the book and enjoyed it but 39%!!!! We have 61% of the book left and the mystery was done. That is a tad bit disappointing.
2. It was very easy to guess who the main perpetrator was. Very, very easy.
3. Some elements of the book were very hard to digest. I mean the killer was a stalker par excellence. I get it, that can happen but still so much of what he managed to do and get done was a little far fetched.
Rating: 3/5
I did enjoy this book but it wasn't nearly as good as The Kind Worth Killing, which I've reviewed HERE.
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